If there was a single program that worked for every single person in the world, I can tell you that all of us coaches would be out of a job.

So the question is, how do we pick the program that is right for us?

There are a couple of questions we need to ask ourselves when picking the program that’s right for us:

     1)  Is the program designed with our goals in mind?

One question that should always come first and foremost when selecting a program is “will this program help me meet my goals?” Most legitimate programs will advertise exactly what they have been designed for. Whether that is for a bigger squat, losing weight, building muscle, etc. You wouldn’t pick a program meant for increasing your 1 mile swim time if you were looking to get stronger in the squat, bench and deadlift would you? Of course not! So let’s make sure that our program’s goals match our own aspirations as well.

     2)  Is the program realistic/sustainable for us?

Once we have our program selected and we have gotten to work, the next thing we should ask ourselves is can we keep up with the programs progression? There are many different styles of programming out there. Some having a rather low training stimulus, and others having a rather aggressive upward trend when it comes to volume/intensity. We don’t want to be failing lifts or missing sets because we can’t maintain our work load, so we have to be honest with ourselves when training and recognize when too much is too much. If we start to become too fatigued or sacrifice quality of reps/sets for the sake of getting the program done, that’s when we start to crack the door open for injury. That being said, let’s be sure to be honest with ourselves when training to keep ourselves healthy and strong.

     3)  Is the program measurable?

There’s nothing more frustrating than when you put hours and hours into your training and don’t see any results. But we also need to realize that results aren’t strictly measured by the weight on the bar. PR’s come in all sorts of packages. Maybe this week we hit the same weight as last week for a few more reps. Maybe the weight felt easier now than it ever has before. Maybe we are able to get through the training session faster because our work capacity has increased and we don’t have to take as long between sets. These are all wins and they should all be recognized! If we fall into the trap of only measuring our success by the weight we load on the bar, it becomes very easy for us to become discouraged and not have the motivation to train anymore. This can lead to a deterioration in rep quality, missed sets, or even for us to stop training as a whole. Always make sure that we count even the smallest things when it comes to measuring our success as that will be what will keep us driving forward.

     4) Is the program enjoyable?

This question should honestly be first on the list. We could have the most efficient program, with the perfect set/rep prescription, and just the right volume load, but if we do not enjoy our training, there is absolutely no way we can stick with it. Even the worst of programs if you enjoy the process will heed some sort of result as you will put forth the time and effort. The key to longevity in this sport is having fun. Find a group of friends to train with. Post your progress. Go to different meets. Experience whatever you can in the world of powerlifting and have a blast doing it!

All of these same questions apply as well when looking for a coach. Do they have your best interest in mind? Do they pay attention to how your body is reacting to the training stimulus?  Are you seeing results in any way? Is their training enjoyable? That being said, COMMUNICATE WITH YOUR COACH! They will not be able to fix a problem if you don’t bring the issue to their attention.

Hopefully these few tips will help you select the next program that is right for you!

A great place to start looking for a program is our TTS program library! Click here to check it out! tts.programs.app/

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Here’s to a stronger tomorrow!

Stronger Together

Stronger. Every. Day.